Improved ditching-machine



UNITED STATES THOMAS R. COOK, OF WEST NEWTON, INDIANA'.

IMPROVED DITCHING-IVIACHINE.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 53,950, dated April 17, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS R. Cook, of West Newton, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Machine for Cutting Ditches for Drains and other Purposes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying` drawings, making part of the same, in which- Figure l is a side elevation, and Fig. 2 a top or plan view, of the machine.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspondin g parts in the several figures.

The nature of my invention consists in providin g a frame-work supported on trucks and having a wheel furnished with scoops on its periphery, which is rotated by means of' gearing propelled by an endless-chain horsepower,

also attached to the frame, the trucks resting cn rails that form a track, along which the n; vchine travels, being propelled by the horsepower. At the same time the wheel-scoops di out the trench, the dirt being discharged il the scoops by means ot' a scraper, arranged for that purpose over the side ot' the machine, the whole forming au eflicient vmachine for cutting trenches for drains on land.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and t.V emy invention, Iwill proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A is the frame-work, to which all the other parts are attached. B is the cutter or scoop w heel, on the periphery ot' which the cutters or scoops a are iixed. Outterslike c maybe placed just behind the scoops a, which will aid in loosening the ground, so that the next scoop will more easily take it up. The wheel B is hung to the under side of frame A, and is furnished with cogs on the inside of the rim, and is rotated by a pinion on the end ot' the same shaft with pulley O.

D D are the axles, upon which are the trucks d d, Src. Toothed wheels e e are also lixed upon the ends of axles.

E is a longitudinal shaft having at the ends screw-cogs z' t' and bevel-wheel n in the middle. ois a bevel-wheel fixed on the end of same shaft with pulley C.

F is the scraper for discharging the soil from the scoops on wheel B, and is hung on ajournal on standard m, so as to move freely, and is kept in the position shown in Fig. 2 by the spring s.

The track is three rails, laid parallel to each other, and kept in position by means of the movable notched ties V. Nine pieces, or three sets, are required, so that as the machine moves forward from one set of rails to the next the set behind are brouglrt to the front and laid and leveled for the machine to run upon, and so on alternately, the track being necessary to the easy movement of the machine as well as to keep the bottom of the trench level, or by means of which to give the trench such fall as to carry off water.

Au ordinary endless-chain horse-power is attached to the frame A. and is connected, by belt or otherwise, to pulley O. The rotation ot' pulley O communicates motion tothe scoopwheel B, and at the same time the machine is carried forward by the obvious action of the beveled wheels n o, shaft E, screw-cogs t' e', and

toothed wheels e c, on the axles D D. The

scoops dig up and carry up the dirt, which is discharged therefrom by the scraper F, which is caused to turn out by the inclination ofthe scoops, carrying the dirt with it, which falls onto the chute H and thence to the ground. As soon as the point et the scraper is passed by the scoop a the scraper is brought back to its original position by the action ot' spring s, and so on alternately.

I contemplate, also, arranging the scraper to be operated by gearing, so as to place the scoops more nearly parallel with the axis'ot' wheel B.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The arrangement ot' the bevel-wheels u and o, shaft E, screw-cogs i 1', and toothed wheels e c, for the purpose of propelling the machine along the track, and in combination with the track au d wheel B and scraper F, substantially as set forth.

THOMAS R. COOK.

Titnesses'z Unas. S. WARE, O. F. MAYHEN. 

